Contact

Latest News

Quick Quote documents:

How can Peer Support work in Aberdeenshire?

Peer Support is recognised as a very valuable tool in recovery and this has come up time and time again at various meetings in Aberdeenshire Alcohol and Drugs Partnership. However what was not evident from discussion at these meetings was how do we establish Peer Support effectively across Aberdeenshire. To help us with this challenge Aberdeenshire ADP have commissioned McMillan Rome to help identify needs and potential solutions to enable provision of Peer Support in the most appropriate way for our communities.

Andy Rome is currently engaging with various projects, people in recovery etc. as well as identifying new research and evaluation that may be beneficial and help Aberdeenshire confidently take forward a Peer Support project. Consultation will go on until mid March with report and findings being presented at the beginning of April.

If you feel you that you would want to contribute to the evaluation of Peer Support in Aberdeenshire please get in touch with us at aberdeenshire.adp@nhs.net

New website launched:

Broch Blether and Banter

An exciting event took place on Tues 24th January at the JIC in Fraserburgh. The ‘Broch Blether and Banter’, an informal lunch time conversation over soup and sweet, brought together folk from Fraserburgh who are on a journey of recovery and also some staff from support services. Together they shared a meal while having an informal blether about recovery in the Broch.

What is it like to be in recovery in the Broch? What is needed to support folk in their recovery? Does Fraserburgh need a recovery café and if so, what should it look like, who should it be for, when and where should it take place?

These and more were the conversation topics the participants debated at the tables. Peer volunteers from other recovery cafes in Banff and Peterhead had also come along to share their experiences and learning points from developing their cafes. With a total of 38 people attending, the JIC kitchen was bustling with people.

The event was organised by a recently formed partnership of services and individuals to look at the development of social opportunities for people in recovery and it was funded through the ADP North community forum. Volunteers occupied the JIC kitchen all morning to prepare a scrumptious lunch and the result was so delicious, it got a special mention on many evaluation feedback forms.

Plenty comments were left on table cloth and wall posters to document people’s views and ideas. The feedback was unanimous: Fraserburgh needs a recovery café/hub and this event should mark the start of something.

Some quotes from people attending the event:

‘very pleased I attended this afternoon. The longest I’ve been out of the house for a long time’

‘productive hour. Hope feedback will be used in a productive way to start something new for people in recovery to be a part of’

A number of people also expressed their willingness to be involved in the development of a recovery café, so watch this space for next steps of development.

ADP COMMUNITY FORUMS’ CELEBRATION EVENT

We are very pleased to announce that Aberdeenshire ADP Community Forums held a very successful event on Saturday 23rd April – Forums’ Celebration Event, “Three Forums, One Voice”. This free, exciting event was held at the Aberdeen Curl from 10:00 – 16:00 and was an opportunity to find out what Forums have been up to, take part in great workshops (drumming, yoga, mindfulness, acupuncture, discussion about mutual aid) and many more. You could also hear from Alison Cameron, an Aberdonian in recovery, who was named one of 50 Inspirational Women in Health in 2014 and one of the top 50 Patient Leaders in the UK in 2015 by the Health Service Journal (please see the programme below).

There was a palpable sense of community and brotherhood – 90% of participants were citizens of Aberdeenshire.

North Aberdeenshire NEWS

Recovery Week in Aberdeenshire has been very successful and has now come to an end but recovery doesn’t stop here. We are proud to introduce you to a series of film clips produced by The ADP North Community Forum Film Project to raise awareness and make recovery visible.

We proudly release the first one:

‘What does recovery mean to you?’ – North Aberdeenshire community members speak about recovery:

More info about the ADP North community forum:

A NEW SDF RESOURCE OF USEFUL INFORMATION FOR STAFF WORKING WITH PEOPLE WHO INJECT DRUGS

In response to the ongoing HIV outbreak in Glasgow, which affects around 50 people who have injected drugs, Scottish Drugs Forum has worked with local partners including NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde to produce a resource of useful information for staff working with people who inject drugs. This is the first such resource to be produced in Scotland for years.

HIV has far less of a profile in Scotland than in other countries where harm reduction services were not in place in time or adequately resourced and HIV took hold within the drug injecting population. The Glasgow outbreak is a warning that we should remain vigilant to the possibility of HIV infection. It has also become apparent that some staff and drug users themselves have dated notions of testing and treatment and of the prognosis for someone who is HIV positive. This resource addresses these subjects and I commend it to you and to your partners and colleagues across the drugs field.

This resource is a basis on which to develop local planning on how to engage, test and treat people who have injected drugs and may have contracted HIV.